where the past is always present

Princess Diana’s Wedding Tiara

Britain's Princess Diana and Prince Charles wave to the cameras and onlookers following their fairytale wedding in July 1981 at St. Paul's Cathedral, London. To everyone, the smiling royals in the glass coach seemed like a dream couple.

Princess Diana‘s wedding tiara gave her a “cracking headache” said her brother, Charles Spencer, in an interview on the American program, “Entertainment Tonight.”

Charles, the 9th Earl Spencer, described how he was able to spend some time with Diana, Princess of Wales, after her marriage to Britain’s Prince Charles on July 29, 1981. Theroyal weddingat St. Paul’s Cathedral in London was watched by an estimated global TV audience of 750 million. Spencer recalled being with his sister that memorable day:

”In the evening we all went to a sort of semi-private party and she was there and she seemed incredibly relaxed and happy and I just remember she had a cracking headache too, because she wasn’t used to wearing a tiara all morning,” said the aristocrat during the interview posted on the U.S. show’s website.

Diana’s wedding tiara – which is known now as the “Spencer Tiara” – is a Spencer family piece with an elaborate design of stylized flowers decorated with diamonds in silver settings. Princess Diana (1961-1997) wore this and other tiaras (or coronets) many times during her lifetime.

Princess Diana wears the Spencer tiara at a 1983 dinner banquet in New Zealand.

Earl Spencer added that he still has a piece of his sister’s wedding cake with her name on it.

39 Responses

Wow, Lisa, look at that expression! I mean, I wouldn’t want to diminish the acts of charity she performed, or the love she so effortlessly lavished on the sick, or the bravery she demonstrated in her fight against land mines- but Jeez! Can that girl pout or WHAT?

Ummmmm-that is not a pout. That is an incredibly SAD expression on her face. Imagine having to sit there and make nice at these events with your husband knowing that he was going to take off for that hag’s place as quickly as possible.
As for making fun of the headache, Winston…..if you are not accustomed to the weight and none of the family suggested wearing the tiara for a while each day, you’s have a headache, too!

I had never dreamed of any tiara causing a “cracking headache.” My, my, the things women endure in the name of royal elegance.

I do recall reading that in the weeks prior to Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation, the coronation crown (St. Edward’s crown) was quietly delivered to Buckingham palace so Lilibet could practice wearing it around in the royal courtyard and accustom herself with its royal heft (4.96lbs).

Winston, I didn’t know that QEII practiced wearing her crown in the royal courtyard! Great tidbit; thanks!

Queen Victoria’s coronation crown was very heavy. In the latter part of the Nineteenth Century, she had a new crown made – a coronet – lighter than the other. Read about it here: Queen Victoria’s Tiny Crown:

Diana was very beautiful from an early age. Her sense of style was and is unrivaled. Her compassion for those of lesser means in life made me strive to have compassion for those of lesser means. I love you Diana still.

Who has the Spencer tiara now? Is it possible Kate could get the same “cracking headache” from this tiara on her wedding day? I’m thinking the tiara would have been passed to her brother, Charles, if so, perhaps he’ll allow Kate to wear it if she chooses. It is a beautiful tiara so the photos of a solemn, sad, withdrawn Diana are (to me) especially powerful. We teach little girls fairy-tales so they dream of marrying a prince and becoming a princess then, when you see Diana, looking like the her heart was broken (which it was) and she wanted to scream and run away from the prince and his castle (which she kind-of did), it really puts another “spin” on all those fairy-tale-wishes and dreams of riding in that golden carriage…..I guess it’s just the “happily everafter” part that’s the big lie!

Lisa,
As of December 17, 2011, the Spencer Tiara is on display in the “Diana: A Tribute” exhibit at Foxwoods Casino in Ledyard, Connecticut, USA. The exhibit included items from Princess Diana’s childhood, the Spencer Tiara and her wedding dress with the 25 foot train, several of her dresses, photos and film footage of all the charity work she did. I believe after some time in January 2012, the items will be returned to Althorp where the items will be on display in a museum currently being constructed. This information was given at the exhibit.

Since it never belonged to the “Queen”, I can’t imagine why it would go ‘back to the Queen!’
I hope that Kate will wear one piece of Diana’s jewelry, other than the fabulous and sentimental engagement ring. I have been told that Diana picked that ring herself from a selection that Charles made available to her. How very unromantic but then he is a rather cold fish and frankly deserves the horse he is married to now!
I wish the very best to William and Catherine and hope their marriage is the best the royal family has ever witnessed.

Nannie….My horses would be extremely offended if I told them they looked like the Duchess of Corndogs! If you ever ride a horse, please don’t let them hear you say such a thing–you may end up on your royal fanny! (Heeheehee)
I do agree that Chuckles is a cad…..I can’t forget his “..whatever love is…” comment to the press as he and Diana announced their engagement! What a jacka….oops, I mean JERK!
I’m glad William and Catherine waited and shared more than six-months together before they chose to marry. I think that will make a huge difference in their marriage.

Starflower…..I meant I was glad Kate and William had been together longer than the six months Charles and Diana had “dated” before they announced their engagement. Remember that Di was still calling Charles “Sir” until a few days before their wedding so the six months they “shared” before becoming engaged was no where near long enough for them to really KNOW one another. It shows remarkable maturity that William and Catherine waited nearly ten years to get married. So sorry I was not clear on that.

I heard Kate would be wearing the same tiara for her wedding that Queen Elizabeth wore when she married Prince Phillip. I think that’s the Romanov tiara….which carries some serious “heebie-jeebie” power since we all know how the Romanov family was, in my opinion, deserted, and ultimately doomed, when Queen Victoria didn’t try to help them get out of Russia–especially chilling since she was the Czarina’s grandmother. Geez, I thought MY family was screwed up!

People keep saying Kate and her family are “commoners” (ah, the dreaded “C-word” that strikes fear in the hearts of “royals” everywhere) but I think the Windsor/Wales/Whatever alias they choose family is lucky they’re getting some upgraded DNA in the gene-pool!

Diana will ALWAYS be MY princess! I don’t know what she ever saw in Charles, but because of her ‘bravery’ we were able to see a beautiful woman at work even though she was suffering emotionally. Thanks for all the info on the tiara. Diana only made it more beautiful – she herself was a diamond, a gem among gems. RIP Diana. You will always be remembered.

Wow! This picture epitomizes the pain and anguish that Princess Diana was experiencing at that point in her life. The only decent thing that Prince Charles ever did was give her William and Harry and granted her a divorce. Other than that, he was a waste of space in her world! Such an amazing woman. How proud she would be of her William today!

She’s one of the most beautiful people ever on earth, alive or not. Her eyes are simply gorgeous and the sense of bravery, courage and elegance simply captures everyone’s hearts.

I just think she was way too young to marry. Plus, Prince Charles and herself hadn’t known each other for that long. It was a squished, crowded and sad marriage from the start and led into traumatic events.

There were a group of us (the die-hard fan of Diana and her 2 sons) watching the royal wedding of William and Kate. We never stop mentioning Princess Diana all through the ceremony. We were so delighted to see the Spencer family among the guests . But when we saw Charles and that horse of his, we screamed our heart out. She should not be there. She was waving to the crowd too. She spoilt the whole scenario of the wedding. She should know she is not wanted and yet she attended. Why the sufferer had to die and not the trouble maker. But the one person to be blamed is Charles because he opens room for her. Hopefully he will never be the next King.

As I looked at the British people lining the streets on the day of the royal wedding, I thought, “Prince Charles, you didn’t do right by your people. When you married Diana, you cheated on her and you cheated your people. Shame on you.” Now the people dare to hope again that, this time, they have something real and lasting to believe in – a lifelong love affair between Wills and Kate.

i agree with all you said , that charles let his people and diana down , i am sorry that the wedding ever took place …..i thought diana was all she could and should have been , a true “people’s princess”..she held up her part of the bargain and he didnt.

..but i have another thought on charles , i feel the whole thing was handled wrong from the beginning ,he was a playboy prince because he was not allowed to marry who he wanted to , charles was pushed into a marraige with diana and they didnt even know each other , so so sad…. i honestly now feel so glad that he is finally happy with the love of his life , to me that is a true love
story …any thoughts?

hello lisa
was wondering if you had any tidbits ( i enjoy all your tidbits) about zara and peter phillips , lives . spouses , weddings? and also any of the monaco children and grandchildren ….
love your blog … i am a huge fan
les

one of my favorite books of all time is “georgianna” it is about georgianna spencer { diana’s great great great aunt} who married the duke of devonshire … yes there was a movie made of it called ” the duchess” ….but as always the book is better …. all of us have history in common and this book has it all royals,the money ,the titles , politics and even sex … i could not put that book down from beginning to end… wanted to share , if anyone wants to read a good book
les